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Unemployed Michiganders to receive additional benefits next week

"Balancing The Account" by kenteegardin is licensed with CC BY-SA 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/

Next week, the state unemployment agency should start distributing the first 300 dollars in additional weekly aid to jobless Michiganders. The money is part of additional federal COVID-19 relief.

Steve Gray is the director of the Unemployment Insurance Agency.  He expects the additional money will last for three to five weeks.

“They have a pot of money and as long as it's there, they’ll pay out the money," said Gray. "And so it depends on what states take advantage of it. It seems like most states will take advantage of it.”

Gray says since the money is coming from FEMA’s budget future funding will also depend on whether the agency needs funds for hurricanes or other disasters. 

Roughly a million Michiganders are currently receiving unemployment benefits.